Rebels test Warsaw early but eventually fall 66-26 to Landrum and Eagles

The AZS Silesia Rebels jumped out to an early 13-0 lead against the undefeated Warsaw Eagles on Sunday afternoon, giving home fans cause to start thinking upset. Tyrone Landrum quickly put those thoughts to rest, however, scoring five touchdowns in a wild 66-26 victory for the Eagles to answer fellow MVP candidate Niles Mittasch and the six touchdown he scored on Saturday.

Silesia came into the game with a 1-2 record that included losses of 59-0 and 49-0, so it came as a surprise when they scored the first two touchdowns of the game against the league's leading defense. James Dobson nearly ran the opening kickoff of the game back for a touchdown, and quarterback Michal Kolek punched it in from the one-yard line to give Silesia the lead. The Rebels then forced a three-and-out that led to a drive that ended in a 30-yard touchdown pass from Kolek to Zbigniew Szrejber.

Tyrone Landrum exploded for three first-quarter touchdowns, including one on the very next play, an 87-yard kickoff return. He gave the Eagles the lead on their next possession, when he got his team out of a penalty-induced hole by catching a short Kevin Lynch pass and taking it 95 yards up the sideline. Lynch and Landrum connected for scores three times in the contest.

Warsaw added another quick touchdown on a Lynch scramble in the second quarter, and the Rebels were in danger of being steamrolled. They fought back, however, getting another long return from Dobson and another short Kolek touchdown run to get back to within 28-20. Unfortunately for Silesia, Landrum wasn't finished yet and he ran his second kickoff of the game back for a touchdown following that score. When the dust finally settled, Warsaw led 42-26 at the half.

The Rebels ran out of gas in the second half, and Warsaw kept adding points to a lead that quickly grew to unreachable heights. Landrum's third touchdown reception was followed by a Brett Peddicord field goal late in the third quarter, and Warsaw led 52-26 after three. Peddicord was perfect on eight extra point tries during the contest. Jakub Zdun gave Lynch a fourth touchdown pass in the fourth quarter, and Norman Seignious closed out the scoring with a 66-yard interception return.

With one week remaining before the season's midway point and a break for the Polish May holiday weekend, both teams are currently in favorable positions. The Rebels are just 1-3, but all three losses have come against the Topliga's 'Big 3', and they remain on track to contend for the final playoff spot. They will take to the road next week to face winless Kozly Poznan on Saturday, April 28, in a contest that doesn't look so straightforward after Kozly's big free agent signings last week.

The Eagles, meanwhile, face possibly their biggest game of the season the next day, when they travel to Wroclaw to take on the Devils in a game that could very well decide who gets the Topliga's number one postseason seed. The Devils have won three straight since an opening-weekend loss to the Gdynia Seahawks.